Bills QB Josh Allen raves about rookie WR Keon Coleman following Week 8 win

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen had significant praise for rookie wide receiver Keon Coleman following his team's Week 8 win.

Kyle Silagyi | Oct 28, 2024

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Rookies are generally expected to grow more comfortable and adapt to a new caliber of competition throughout their debut campaigns, but the rapid development seen from Buffalo Bills wide receiver Keon Coleman over the past two weeks was perhaps unanticipated.

It wasn’t as though he had played poorly through the first six games of his professional career, leading Buffalo’s wideouts in snaps as he caught 12 passes for 201 yards and two scores. He’s ascended to national prominence over the past two weeks, however, reeling in four passes for 125 yards in his team’s Week 7 win over the Tennessee Titans before catching another five balls for 70 yards and a touchdown in the Bills’ Week 8 thrashing of the Seattle Seahawks.

He’s still prone to the occasional rookie mistake, but he’s now consistently showcasing the skillset—the contested catch ability, the blocking prowess, the red zone expertise, etc.—that made him attractive to Buffalo in the pre-draft process. And though not as statistically fruitful as his Week 7 outing, Coleman’s performance against Seattle was perhaps his strongest as a professional, as he made the exact impact the Bills’ brass expected of him after selecting him in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft; Buffalo has long lacked a go-to threat in the red-zone, and the rookie’s first-quarter Mossing of former Pro Bowl cornerback Riq Woolen was a perfect example of how Coleman differentiates this year’s Buffalo offense from past units.

He played on a position-high 63 snaps in the comfortable victory, suggesting that he’s earned the unabated trust of his coaching staff. He’s also earned the confidence of his quarterback, with Josh Allen often looking to him in crucial moments throughout the win (the first-quarter touchdown being only one such example). Allen raved about the first-year pass-catcher following the game, expressing excitement about his recent development before suggesting that the sky is the limit with regard to his potential.

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“Absolutely [playing more confident], and that’s something, our staff has got him rolling,” Allen said. “Knows what he’s doing, and when he knows what he’s doing and gets rolling, he’s a damn good football player. He’s continuing to make plays for us, and you love to see that from your young guy. He’s only going to get better.”

After an offseason in which national pundits questioned Buffalo’s draft-day decision to pass up on several talented wideouts in favor of a raw player like Coleman, it’s encouraging to see the rookie’s impact growing this quickly into his professional career. As Allen notes, he only figures to improve as he further develops and acclimates to the professional level, which doesn’t bode particularly well for defenses across the league.

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